The Dating Map
by lupinsiriusluva
Summary: A little spell. That was all they wanted. And they we're ready to give something in turn for it. Who could've predicted that their little deal for the spell would've given way to so many shenanigans and misunderstandings and drama? But that's what makes up school life, isn't it? Now it's up to them not to let petty things come in front of friendship. Or even love...
1. Flowers

It was an everyday September morning inside the Great Hall. Everyone was sitting in their house tables with their friends, happily chewing down their meals as they waited for classes to start. All that could be heard was the clattering of cutlery on the golden plates, and the happy chatter of hundreds of animated students.

That is, until the longest, shrillest of shrieks sliced right through the ambience.

The shriek was soon followed by a body. A hufflepuff 5th year girl with bright orange hair was running at breakneck speed down the Hall. Everyone silently stared at her, and almost in unison looked towards the entrance she had ran through.

As if on cue, there was a huge crash outside the entrance of the Hall, and a giant dragon thundered through, giving out a deafening roar. The whole Hall then erupted into screams and chaos like a stepped on anthill, students running in every direction. The professors instantly sprung to action, rounding the beast and throwing every spell they could think of. Yet the more they fought, the more they came to notice that there was something… odd about the creature. It was the color of parchment, it had no scales, and it looked extremely cartooney. Almost like a parody of itself. Before long, though, they managed to subdue the strange animal. Subdued in this case meaning that at a certain point it just disappeared into thin air. The professors all stared at each other, pretty much at a loss. Awkward silence followed, everyone trying to make sense of what just happened.

A sudden loud clatter made them all turn to the sound with a start. It was the same orange haired girl from the beginning, one of the golden plates wobbling at her feet.

"Sorry," she winced, "sorry, real sorry about this."

"_You_!" McGonagall was utterly bristling, "Why is it always _you_?"

"It's not always me, professor! Sometimes it's Black! Only I do way cooler stuff."

"Bitch!" Someone somewhere in the hall said.

"You - will come with me - to my office," McGonagall said between gritted teeth. She seemed to be having trouble talking without screaming.

The girl gulped, shrinking her head to her shoulders as she followed the professor to her office while mumbling, "But I'm not even gryffindor…"

"Nice going, Sammie," said a mocking Sirius Black as she walked past him. She would've given him a couple of choice swear words, but due to the professor's presence, she settled for mouthing "wanker" at him. He snorted to James Potter's shoulder.

The next few hours went on uneventful. It was now break time, and a fidgety, blonde gryffindor awaited nervously outside McGonagall's office. The door beside her finally creaked open, making her squeak in surprise. Out marched the transfiguration professor, closely followed by Pomona Sprout, the hufflepuff head. A few steps later, came out the orange haired mischief maker.

"Oh! Samira!" Exclaimed the blonde in perhaps an overly dramatic tone, "Oh, I'm so glad you're out!"

"Calm down, Arlene. I wasn't in trial for murder or anything like that. Jeez," the hufflepuff - Samira - rolled her eyes and started walking. Arlene followed.

"B-b-b-but, what did McGonagall say?" Arlene asked with wide, scared blue eyes. It was almost scary how huge her eyes were.

"I'm not expelled, if that's what you're asking. But it was nothing spectacular, really. I just explained to them that my original goal was to make the dragon move _inside_ the paper, not _out_ of it! And so she took 10 points from hufflepuff for endangering students. But then she gave them back for 'an impressive bit of magic'," she made quote signs with her fingers, "'Cause I did make that spell myself, you know? So yeah, I guess it all balances out in the end," she shrugged, then suddenly added, "Bet _you_ wouldn't've been able to pull that off, huh, Black?"

Just as Arlene was about to think that they probably _had_ tortured her into losing her mind, out of the blue, Sirius Black simply appeared next to Samira.

"How the bloody hell did you know?" He asked, astounded.

"I can smell mediocrity," she wrinkled her nose and grinned, "also, that thing is getting too small to hold you both; I caught flashes of your feet now and then."

"I told you," a voice was heard, then James Potter materialized next to Arlene a second later, making her jump out of her skin, "that this was a bad idea."

"And I told you to just let me go by myself with it!" Sirius told James over Samira.

"Hell, no! Who knows what kind of havoc you'd wreak by yourself with such a powerful tool? You'd probably harass half the female population in the school and get it confiscated!" He fondled his invisibility cloak lovingly.

"… I resent that, Prongs."

"And I am being subjected to your harassment _because_…" Samira extended it to a question.

"Right, business!" James clapped his hands together and picked up his pace so he was facing the girls, walking backwards. "We want to buy the copyrights of your little spell."

Samira quirked an eyebrow, "_Buy_?"

"Potter, Black, and Abdullah!"

They all turned to their names and saw McGonagall glaring at them from the end of the hallway. They glanced at each other, and gave purposely guilty grins.

McGonagall made a tight line with her lips and pointed at them, "I do _not_ want to hear about _any_ of you, you hear?"

"Why, professor!" Sirius slung his arms over James, "How can you neglect yourself the joy of having to deal with our charming and magnetic personalities?" He gave her a winning smile.

"I mean it, Black! All three of you! Stay off the radar!" And with that, she turned and left.

"You know, I always love it when she automatically leaves Orwell out of the picture," James smiled at Arlene. The blonde blushed.

"I know right?" Samira agreed, "It's like her eyes just scan right over her. You're a gryffindor and one of my best friends! You'd think that you would be part of _some_ of the action."

"Well, one of us has to be the sensible one," Arlene replied serenely, "In your case, that role is played by Remus, isn't it?" she addressed the boys.

"Most of the time, yeah," James answered, "But even he gets in on the action once in a while!"

"I'd rather not draw attention to myself," she said meekly.

"I still don't get how you're the gryffindor and she's the hufflepuff, Orwell. Seriously," Sirius chuckled. Arlene hid part of her face behind her long wavy curtain of hair.

"So, anyway!" James turned brightly to Samira, "What say you to our offer?"

"You didn't actually _make_ an offer," Samira said with raised eyebrows, "And since I'm pretty sure we're not talking about cold hard cash here, I'm forced to ask: What's in it for me? If anything at all."

"Why, Sammie!" Sirius put an undignified hand on his chest, "I am slighted that you would thing we'd be so egotistical! Of course there is something in it for you!"

"And that would be?"

"Why, eternal glory, of course!" James put his arm over her shoulder.

Sirius followed suit, also slinging his arm over her, "Just picture it!" His free hand extended towards an imaginary horizon, "All the wonders we could do, bringing pictures and drawings to life! All while using your spell!"

"Uuuuuhuh. And _how_ exactly will people know it's my spell?"

This seemed to freeze the dreaming duo. Samira smirked inwardly, "Are you just gonna scream 'This was brought to you by Samira Abdullah!' every time you use it? 'Cause if that's the case, I'd rather keep it to myself-"

"W-we'll think of something!" James said urgently.

"Y-yeah! Something identifying!" Added Sirius

"Yet non-incriminating!" Finished James.

"Yeeaaaah," Samira slowly released herself from the boy's hold, "You go ahead and figure that one out." She walked backwards, facing them as she retreated, "Then come to me and we can talk business, yeah?" She smiled and waved at them, then gracefully turned on her heel and jogged away, closely followed by Arlene.

Classes throughout the day continued without a hitch, until finally came the end of the day. It was friday, so there was that extra amount of energy in the atmosphere anticipating the weekend. Samira and Arlene made their way to their usual spot by the lake, under a huge shady tree, who's branches hung low enough to jump to. Samira stretched leisurely as Arlene plopped down to the soft grass. It was a perfect summer-is-ending-but-its-not-cold-yet day, bright and sunny, nice and cool, perfect amount of wind. Then the hufflepuff started something that to many onlookers would look like stripping. But she would take off all her uniform garments down to her shoes and socks to be left in the lycra shorts under her skirt, and a black tanktop beneath an unbuttoned white school shirt. Everything else came off for the sake of comfort. Then to escape the ogling eyes of surrounding males, she'd proceed to climb the tree with the agility of an overgrown cat. Arlene saw her friend straddle a thick branch with her legs, then lean forward, resting her weight on the branch like an actual resting feline, then take out her wand and proceed to amuse herself with a slow spiral trail of sparkles from the tip of it. The blonde rolled her eyes and chuckled, thinking how easily her friend could get lost inside her own little world.

"Hello, Orwell," a sweet tenor was heard. She shifted her head back enough to see Remus Lupin smiling down at her.

"Oh, hi, Lupin!" Arlene smiled back, not getting up. She was naturally jumpy and uncomfortable around boys, but Remus was one of the few boys that didn't make her extremely nervous. She'd had the opportunity to talk to him more often than his conspicuous friends. If there was any boy she was on even better terms with, it was perhaps Peter.

Remus looked around a little bit, "Um, where's Samira? I thought she'd be with you…"

Arlene sighed, and simply pointed at the tree. As if on cue, Samira's head swung down in a shower of leaves. Remus jumped forward with arms outstretched, thinking for a wild moment she was going to smash her head, but she was still straddled to the lowest branch, so she hung upside down with her arms crossed like an angry possum.

"I thought you we're going to fall," Remus breathed shakily, arms still outstretched.

The girl's angry upside down pose was instantly shattered with a goofy grin, "D'aaaw! You are so adorable!" She squealed and pulled him in a hug, never caring that in her current position, Remu's rapidly blushing face was positioned right at her breasts, which were a choking hazard, to say the least. "But chivalry will get you nowhere!" She finally broke off the embrace and resumed her angry front, "You can tell that lot: cold hard cash, or no dice! Are you okay, Remus?"

The boy's ears were still beet red. "Uh, yes, yes! I'm fine! Ahem, anyway, you have the right idea. They did send me here to… negotiate," it looked like it gave him physical pain to be doing this, "And so, James an- ahem! I mean, Messers Padfoot and Prongs offer you a single bequest of your choice, in turn for your spell." He finished, rubbing his arm, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else but there.

Samira quirked an eyebrow suspiciously. She propelled herself upwards, grabbed the branch with her arms, swung her legs down, then completely let herself fall in a graceful crouch. She slowly got up and walked towards the tall boy. She remembered when he was lanky and awkward, but he had grown well into himself now on his 6th year. She stood dangerously close to him, their noses only inches apart. He started blushing again. He wasn't particularly shy or prudish by any means, but there was something about the fiery hufflepuff's in-your-face-ness that almost intimidated him.

"Anything?" She asked in a low, almost sultry voice. She saw the boy visibly gulp, and had to stomp down a bubble of laughter threatening to escape.

"Yes," he barely squeaked, then he gave an awkward - forceful - jerk forward. It was all he could do not to accidentally head butt her. He inhaled slowly, and it came out as a growl, "Anything," he glared to the side.

Samira took a step back and sighed, putting her hands on her waist seriously, then turned her face to the sky, "So much for eternal glory, huh? But you know, maybe if you stopped tormenting Remus and asked me face to face, I'd consider i-"

"I don't know why we bloody well bother!" A raging Sirius appeared just to Remus' right, and stomped towards the girl with unbridled anger.

"Padfoot, wait!" James appeared a second later, but Sirius was already to Samira. He grabbed her hands and dropped to his knees. They all stared.

"See what it's come to, Abdullah?!" Sirius wailed dramatically, and everyone around slumped in embarrassment for him, "Me. Sirius Black, begging - nay - _groveling_, for you to take our favor and give us that spell!"

Remus observed his friend make a fool of himself for the sake of potential pranks, and he didn't know whether to admire him, or to smack and tell him to get some dignity. But he had to admit that his dangerous determination had given him a scare for a second. Not that he was worried he would've seriously hurt Samira or anything. But he did have a record of being a bit less… careful with her than with other girls. But for one, Samira could handle him just fine, and second, he would have to go over Arlene to lay a hand on the girl. The thought of his fellow gryffindor made him look at a her while the two pranksters bantered, and what he saw actually made him straighten up his back.

Arlene. Sweet, mild little Arlene Orwell had her gaze fixed on Sirius like a lion on its prey, body tense, and what surprised him most of all: She actually had her wand out. Right now she was surreptitiously putting it back in her robes, her eyes never leaving Sirius. Remus raised his eyebrows and looked away.

"You keep. Beating around. The _question_!" Samira said with exasperation.

"What ever do you mean, my love?" Sirius asked with his charmer smile. "OW!" He yelped when Samira hit him upside the head.

"How come _he's_ doing all the groveling and you're on the sidelines, James?" Samira asked.

"I've always had a smidgeon more dignity than Padfoot," James grinned.

Sirius glared back at his friend, "I resent that, Prongs."

Samira gave a theatrical sigh, "I'm getting tired of games," she crossed her arms, "Will you do whatever I say or not?"

Sirius finally straightened up, towering over her, "I'm nothing if not a man of my word," he smirked.

This statement - or maybe the way he said it - greatly annoyed Samira for some reason. She glared, then roughly grabbed him by his gryffindor tie and brought his face to her, "You up for a _date_, pretty boy?" she asked with a wicked smile. Sirius' eyes went wide. He'd known her since his 3rd year, her 2nd, but he certainly hadn't been expecting this. She didn't give him time to answer. "Two weeks, Room of Requirement, wear something nice, bring yellow roses." She pushed him away, wordlessly walked back to the tree, and jumped up again disappearing in a spray of leaves.

The boys remained frozen for a second. Then James doubled up guffawing. He barely managed to walk over to his rapidly paling friend and slap him in the back, "Oh… oh… oh!" he gasped through the laughter, "Now you've done it, eh, Padfoot?!" then he broke down laughing again, leaning on his partner in crime's shoulder to hold himself from falling. Sirius seemed to have become a vegetable.

Samira lounged on her tree branch, amusing herself with her trail of sparkles, the leaves doing a splendid job of muffling the outside sounds. So she was surprised when the leaves suddenly rustled, and she found Arlene grunting her way up to her. She raised her eyebrows and quickly helped her friend.

"What was that?" The blonde asked once she was settled in, looking at her with wide eyes.

"My favor," Samira answered, eyeing her sparkles again.

"B-but, I don't get it. You've never fancied Sirius. Or at least you've never told me…"

"I don't! Cocky git."

"Then… I don't get it…"

Samira finally looked at her friend's baby blue eyes, and smiled, "Arlene, what are my favorite flowers?"

"White daisies," Arlene answered immediately.

"And what are _your_ favorite flowers?"

"Yellow… roses…"

Samira beamed, "Honey, I'm not going on a date. _You_ are."


	2. Lies

The hufflepuff had it all planned out in her head like a screenplay: her best friend Arlene would go on this surprise date with Sirius. They could finally get some time alone and truly know each other without any external distractions. She'd show him her best colors, and the blind asshole would finally see what a beautiful and awesome catch the petite blonde was. They would fall in love, get married, Arlene would make Samira the godmother of her kids, and Sirius would remain light and joking towards her, but always with an underlying tone of respect and gratitude for making him find his true love, and _life would be perfect_.

If only she were so lucky.

But that was not yet to be known. Right now, Samira was leaning against the kitchen entrance, the huge fruit bowl painting, amusing herself with her signature sparkles. Some light steps made her look up, and she smiled as she saw Lily Evans jogging towards her. She had to stomp down the inevitable bubble of envy she always felt when she saw the NATURAL redhead. It was a darker shade than she would like, but it was still better than having to make a hair coloring potion every month.

"Is everything all right?" Evans asked. "I was in history of magic and came as fast as I could."

"Oh, wow, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you skip class!" Samira said worriedly

"Nah, Binns was boring the life out of me," Evans waved it off.

"There's a ghost joke in there somewhere," Samira smirked, "Anyway! I need a huge favor."

"What is it?"

Samira took a deep breath, "I need you to distract James Potter for me next week."

"What?!" Evans yelped, "What in the world for?!"

"I-it's a really long and complicated story. But let's just say I need to stop James from helping Sirius weasel out of something he has to do."

Evans shook her head, "I'm sorry, Samira. I like you and all, but I just can't. I'll end up killing him!"

"I'm willing to take that risk!" Samira smiled pleadingly.

Evans laughed, "I'm sorry, but no. My killing him might jeopardize being head girl next year. But I can find someone else for you! I know for a fact that half the female population in school would kill for a chance like that."

Samira deflated as Evans smiled benignly. She knew that the only girl that would successfully distract the cocky jock was Lily Evans. If that girl told him to jump off a cliff, he would do it with a flourish. She sighed, "Sure. See what you can do. I'll tell you the exact date later. Thanks for your help."

"No problem!" The green eyed girl smiled and waved as she ran off.

Samira stood quite still. Without Evans' help, distracting James was out of the question now. But she had to make sure Sirius would show up, she _had_ to! So it looked like she would have to go straight to the source to get this done.

Or, you know, as close to the source as she could get…

"Tea?" She smiled so wide, her eyes were almost slits. She pushed a delicate teacup to the one on the other side of the table: Remus Lupin.

They were inside the hogwarts kitchen on what would be the Hufflepuff table. The house elves were hustling and bustling with the prep before lunch, clanking cutlery and golden plates were being moved about and put into order, getting everything ready.

Remus sat like a soldier beside the girl; back straight, shoulder taut, and it was like he was trying to dig his elbows into his ribcage, even as he reached out for the tea. For being such a tall, fit guy, he sure knew how to make himself seem small. He sipped the tea silently, giving Samira a nervous sidelong glance. She had her face propped by her fists, leaning on the table. The gesture exaggerated her cheshire cat smile.

"You've always been so sweet, you know that?" She said in an overly sugary falsetto.

"I very much doubt you summoned me here just to flatter me," Remus set his cup down, relaxing a tiny bit.

"You're very much right," Samira shifted so she was straddling the bench in a most unladylike manner so to face Remus full front. He remained with both legs under the table, and took another sip, consciously driving his eyes away from her skirt's precarious situation. "I need your help with something," she said, face all business.

"Did you change your mind with the favor?" He asked with a hint of amusement, gaze still fixated on the tea.

"Oh, dear, no! Actually, it's Sirius I'm a bit concerned about not coming through with it… does that surprise you?" She asked when she saw Remus frown at her.

"It does, actually," he put his tea down, "Sirius is many things, but I never thought he'd come out as a slither-outer, especially not to you. I think that he…"

"… You think that he…?"

The boy sighed and faced her, "I think that he was a bit disappointed when you asked for that date, because he saw you as the only girl in campus that wasn't drooling over him. He's actually not tried any real moves on you cause you were different to him. Because you saw past his looks."

It was Samira's turn to be wide eyed and rigid. She had never thought much into her and Sirius' relationship - or lack thereof. For her, he'd always been a cocky wanker that was great for a good laugh, but that was just about it. To think that he actually held her in some level of esteem was baffling. In her mind, he was just… Sirius! The guy with the hilarious name and a fanbase. There wasn't any respect or esteem because she didn't know much about him outside the very small talk they had once in a blue moon, or when by coincidence they had detention at the same time. She knew he had a brother in her year, but nothing more than that. This bothered her a lot more than she would've thought.

"Well," she forced a smile, "He needn't be disappointed, because as it happens, the date is not for me. It's for Arlene."

Remus looked like she had slapped him and he'd liked it, "Wait… so-"

"I was worried that he'd get cold feet and not show up if he thinks it's me. And with what you just told me, it confirms my fear. So I need _your_ help to make sure he shows up."

"Why don't you just tell him it's Arlene he's going out with?"

"I'd rather not. Arlene's not too big on secrecy, but she's letting me have this one prank, bless her soul. It's a public service and my own personal amusement, all in one glittery package!" She clapped rapidly in excitement.

Remus laughed once under his breath, "So you just want to have a bit of fun at his expense before giving him the spell?"

"Pretty much," she smiled

"Fair enough," He smiled back.

"So it's your job to make sure he doesn't send James, or Peter, or _anyone_ in his stead!" She pointed at him seriously.

"I honestly don't think he will, but I'll keep an eye out."

Samira squealed and hugged Remus, "You are the sweetest, most adorable thing-!"

"So it's come to this?" A male voice made them look to the entrance of the kitchen. There was a sandy haired ravenclaw looking like the protagonist of a spanish soap opera catching his wife cheating.

"Ugh!" Samira groaned, still not releasing Remus, "So it's come to _nothing_, Ruben! We are _not going out_!"

"Mind giving us some time alone, _mate_?" the boy's - Ruben's - tone was much less friendly than his words. He strode towards them in a way that made Remus pry himself free from the girl and pointedly stand in his way.

"Who are _you_?" Remus asked, sounding a lot bolder than he felt.

Ruben was practically chest to chest with Remus in obvious challenge. He was a couple of inches shorter than the gryffindor, but where Remus was slim and fit, Ruben was stocky and thickset. He smirked, "I'm her owner." Not two seconds later, he deftly dodged a flying teacup, which crashed loudly against the wall. He laughed, "Oh, come on, babe!" He said over Remus' shoulder, "It was just a joke!"

"Well you're not funny," Samira hissed, getting up and separating the boys. Between them, she looked comically short.

"Samira, who is this?" Remus asked her directly.

She sighed, "He's just a friend."

"Friend?!" both boys yelped simultaneously.

"You can't be serious," Remus shook his head.

"Yeah, baby! You know we're more than that!" Ruben said, surprising the girl by grabbing her by the waist and pulling her in.

"Hands off and you don't lose them," she smiled a very dangerous smile. The ravenclaw complied, lifting his arms in surrender and taking a step back. It was the smirk in his face that made her want to punch him still, "Thank you," she said with exaggerated patience, "now _leave_."

He shrugged, "You know you can't deny me forever, love," he walked backwards to the entrance.

"Watch me," she growled.

After Ruben was out of the room, the remaining two sank back on the benches.

"Yeah, sorry you had to see that," Samira chuckled, leaning her head on the table.

"Samira what- you- I dont-" Remus choked on his own words, then let out such a loud growl of frustration, Samira actually sat bolt upright, eyes wide. "Sorry," he apologized, struggling to calm down, "but Samira, that is downright sexual harassment! Why didn't you tell me? I'm a prefect!"

"A _gryffindor_ prefect-"

"That doesn't matter!"

"And besides, you're kind of doing a lousy job keeping James and Sirius in check."

"McGonagall can handle them! Samira, I am serious!"

"No you're not, you're Remus!" Samira giggled at her own joke, then stopped when she saw the look Remus was giving her, "Oh wow, you _are_ angry," she said awkwardly.

He sighed, "I'm not angry, I'm _worried_. These things just tend to get worse before they get better!"

"Okay, look, Remus. I appreciate your concern, but I've been able to handle him these past two years-"

"_Two years_?!"

"I can handle him until he graduates," she continued as if uninterrupted, "Anyway, he's not usually that grabby. He probably felt threatened because you were here. _Males_," she rolled her eyes. "And I didn't come here for a lecture. This suddenly got really intense, and I don't like it." She got up, "Are you going to help me with Sirius, or not?"

Remus put his forehead on the heel of his hand, "Yes, I will."

"Thank you," she said sincerely, then walked to the entrance.

"Samira!" Remus called out just as she was opening the painting door. She turned to look. He was still sitting at the table, "I mean it. If I ever see him harassing you again, I won't just stand behind you."

She looked at him seriously, "He's Arlene's brother."

"I don't care," his voice went down an octave that made a cold wave run down her spine. There was something about him. Something about how he always seemed so collected and mature, but how he could exude imminent danger with the smallest of gestures. He'd honed this ability as of recently, because Samira didn't remember him being like this in her first years at school.

She forced a smile, "Just focus on the task at hand, okay?" and with that, she was out the room.

She closed the giant painting gently, then pressed her back against it, taking deep breaths. Which was stupid, since Remus would be out any second now. But she took a few more calming breaths, slapped her cheeks, then walked away. She didn't enjoy serious situations, they brought her out of her comfort zone and she didn't handle them very well.

Before she knew it, she was almost at the Great Hall. It was almost lunch, so there was a steady stream of students heading in. Just before she went in, though,

"Samira!"

She turned towards the voice, and thundering down the Grand Staircase was Morgan Wilde. At first glance, with her 200 pound, 5'10" bodybuild, bright green mowhawk, and black lips, she was intimidating as hell. But Samira had had the pleasure of meeting the 7th year slytherin under very particular circumstances.

Morgan finally reached the hufflepuff, basically towering over her "I hear you're going out with Black, is that true?"

"Gawd, does gossip run wild around here, and I haven't even told Hayden yet! And no, _I'm_ not going out with Sirius."

"The way you worded that intrigues me," Morgan smiled mischievously.

"You know me so well," Samira returned the mischievous smile, "Indeed there is a catch. I'm not going out with him. Arlene is."

"Whoa! She finally hit the jackpot, eh? Wait… does Sirius know?"

"Nope."

"Fun. Does Orwell know?"

"Well… she know's _she's_ going out with him and not me…"

"She thinks Sirius knows, doesn't she?"

"_Ugh_! She wouldn't agree to it unless I told him!" Samira threw her hands up in frustration, "So I might have told her a teensy lie saying that I was going to tell him," she smiled guiltily.

"Aha," Morgan seemed highly amused, "And how are you going to make sure this doesn't go awry?"

"I asked Remus to help me. He'll make sure Sirius shows up no matter what! But… I might've also told him a teensy lie saying that Arlene was okay with Sirius not knowing."

"Him showing up or not wasn't really what I was concerned about. I mean, I just don't get the whole deal of keeping them both in the dark."

"It's like this: I know Arlene likes Sirius, but she won't do anything about it! And I admit, I don't want to tell Sirius for the sake of my amusement. Also, he might come up with some rubbish excuse about how the favor is meant for me and me only-"

"Favor?"

"-and I _really_ want Arlene to get this date with him! She might get a bit mad at me at first, but once their relationship kicks off, she'll forgive me!"

"You're just so sure this is going to work out, aren't you?"

"It's _foolproof_!" Samira gave a nearly deranged smile.

"Good thing you're not a fool, then," Morgan quirked an eyebrow with an amused smile.

"You'll see! My godchildren will be beautiful!"

Morgan laughed at that, "Okay, I gotta go now. Call me when you crash facefirst from those clouds of yours, yes?" then she left.

Samira stuck her tongue out at her retreating back. She knew it was risky, but things that were worthwhile were never safe.


	3. Fight or Flight

The ensuing week was pretty much hell for Samira. She had to constantly go out of her way to keep Sirius, Remus, and Arlene from talking to each other. And that was particularly challenging considering that she was the only one who was _not_ a Gryffindor, so whatever happened in their common room was out of her hands. She did her best by insisting to Remus that neither boy talked to her. "If Sirius sees you talking to her about it, he might overhear! He might be suspicious! And Arlene's a terrible liar! So don't let him talk to her at all!" And even after this, she'd taken extra precautions by slipping drops of sleeping draught into her food every evening, causing the poor Gryffindor to go from the Great Hall straight to bed. But this was affecting her homework wise. And in a guilt attack - and also slight convenience - Samira came up with the brilliant "5AM homework sessions!" That way she would have her friend out of the common room before anyone was even awake, thus reducing the chance of any incident, and she eased her guilt by letting her copy her material.

But after only 5 days of doing this, the toll it took on her was becoming evident.

"Abdullah!"

"Huh?! Whuh?" The hufflepuff jumped in her seat.

Inside the potions classroom down in the dungeons, everyone was looking at her. She felt a dull pain on her forehead. She'd apparently fallen asleep on her cauldron.

"Darling, are you quite allright?" Professor Slughorn asked from his desk in front of the classroom; he had an odd mixture of amusement and concern in his expression. "Do you need to go to the hospital wing?"

Where Samira was sitting, the only thing separating Arlene and Sirius was herself. "No I'm fine!" she said in a single paranoid breath.

"R-really, I'm worried about you. You're getting pale. And so thin… eh, Mr. Black, since you're here, would you mind accompanying Miss Abdullah to see Madame Pomfrey?"

Sirius lifted his eyes from his notes for the first time, and looked at Slughorn, then at Samira, and a wild laugh escaped him, making him slap his hands over his mouth. "I guess not," he muffled, clearly still holding in laughter.

Samira was still a little too drowsy to care, but she rubber her face just in case of drool or something. She then got up, Sirius following suit, and they made their way out.

The hallways were mostly quiet and deserted save for the occasional 6 or 7 year having a free period. Halfway to the Hospital Wing, though, Samira finally broke the silence, getting tired of Sirius stealing glances and snorting. "So why are you stalking me in my classes? You're not even in my year. Is it just for the sake of being annoying?"

"Partly," the boy smiled. "I'm thinking about becoming a professor when I graduate."

She raised her eyebrows, "Well that's interesting," she said genuinely.

"I mean, Auror is my first option, of course. But I wouldn't mind teaching and making more awesome students such as myself."

She laughed, "Oh dear! I fear for our future generations!"

"So every free period I get, I sneak into classrooms, taking notes. And since you're the most troublesome student I know, I'm schooling myself in how the professors deal with you," he grinned jokingly.

"You'd think you'd be schooled enough with your own mischief," she said softly.

"Yeah, but I wanted to see if the method was any different with girls. I must say, I'm highly disappointed in you, Sammy. You've proven to be nothing but disgustingly normal and well behaved."

"Well, I have the common sense not to wreak havoc inside a classroom! And I also kind of haven't been myself lately," she sighed.

"Yeah, about that… Slughorn wasn't kidding when he said you look like rubbish. You look like you've lost 5 pounds, and like someone punched both your eyes."

"Oh, my! You do know how to flatter the girls!"

"I'm serious!"

"_No_?! For a second there I thought you were Peter!" She mocked gasped. Sirius glared, and she giggled, "See? This is exactly the reason why you should never be concerned around me. It gives way to endless possibilities of mockery. And it just doesn't suit you."

Sirius stayed silent for a few paces, then turned his face to the ceiling. "You know, Remus said you'd be like this."

"What - how - What did Remus say?" She said in a single breath, her nerves suddenly on end.

"That you got all defensive whenever anyone worried about you," He gave her a sidelong peek.

"Why would he say anything like that? What else has he told you? What's he been saying about me?" She spoke a mile a minute.

"Have you been sleeping well?"

"Sirius black, don't you dodge my question-!"

"Has something been worrying you lately?"

Samira suddenly picked up her pace, "None of your bloody business!"

Sirius hurried after her, "Of course it's my bloody business! You're my _friend_!" he yelped.

She stopped walking so abruptly, he bumped into her.

"I am?" She said with a dry sort of astonishment, her back still to him. Sirius walked around her to face her, and she had a wrinkled nose and furrowed brow.

"Don't look like you just sniffed a turd! Of course you are!"

"I always thought we were more along the lines of acquaintances, you know? I mean, You have your lot, I have mine. We don't exactly hang…"

"That doesn't mean we're not friends. I wouldn't like to see you get hurt."

"_I_ would, it'd be hilarious."

He reconsidered, "Well, not _seriously_ hurt."

"Okay, this conversation is going down a weird road, and I'm not liking it. What did Remus say to you? Depending on your answer, I might or might not murder him."

Sirius sighed, crossing his arms. "_Nothing_. I was telling Remus that you seemed stressed out lately. He told me not to mention it to you 'cause you get all defensive and don't like people worrying. But when I asked him why he knew that, he totally evaded the question! Now I see that it was _you_ that had him threatened."

"I did _not_ threaten him! The idea! He's just being decent with other people's problems! You know, what _normal_ people do!"

"So you _do_ have problems!"

"Everybody has problems, Sirius!" She enunciated the sentence with exasperation, but inside her mind, she was thanking the universe that it was this, and not that he'd found out something about the date.

"True, but not enough to worry Remus of all people. Contrary to popular belief, he's the most laid back one of our group. Do you have any idea of all the crap he lets us get away with? He's the type of guy that if the world were falling around him, he'd just have some chocolate and go on with his day!"

"He's exaggerating, then," she waved it off.

"But _what_ was he exaggerating?!" He blocked her path, sanding directly in front and dangerously close to her. He looked at her dead in the eye with his gray ones, and a concerned expression that made her stomach do funny flips.

A sudden red alarm started blaring inside her brain. NOPE. This was NOT right. Forbidden territory. She had to get out of this situation no matter what. But he would obviously not take "no" for an answer. She'd have to think on her feet.

Or off them.

"Whoa! Oi! Samira! Hey, you okay?!" Sirius held the suddenly unconscious hufflepuff girl in his arms. He'd caught her just as she was falling. You would think that he'd have experience with swooning girls, but as she felt him manhandling her, almost hyperventilating, it took all of her concentration not to snort in his face. Thankfully, though, she'd successfully avoided this situation for the moment. And she really was legitimately tired. I'd be fun to have him carry her the rest of the way. So she held still, waiting to see that the great Sirius Black would do with her "unconscious" body. This would be an interesting character study indeed.

"Oh my God! What happened?!"

No. No. _No_, NonononononNO!

"Orwell! Thank goodness! I-I dunno what happened, she just keeled over!" Sirius said mildly panicky as the blonde Gryffindor sprinted towards them. She skidded to a halt and dropped to the floor where Sirius held the Hufflepuff in an awkward sitting position.

"Sam? Sam!" Arlene gently slapped her friends cheek to no apparent avail. She stood up, "Why haven't you carried her to the Hospital Wing yet?" she asked urgently.

"'Cause this happened all of 30 seconds ago! And also, she's heavier than she looks."

It was physically painful not to call him "_Twat_."

"Well, are you a wizard, or are you a wizard?!" Arlene exclaimed, and with a silent flick of her wand, Samira felt herself levitate.

And levitate. And levitate.

"Um, you might want to stop now," she heard Sirius' voice from an alarming distance.

"I swear to God, I'm trying," she barely managed to hear Arlene's shaky response. Perhaps this was a good time to pretend to wake up?

A slamming pain on her shoulder made the decision for her. "OW!" she yelled, and once her eyes were open, she immediately regretted it.

She was currently "free-floating" up in the space between the moving staircases, one of the tallest points in the castle, so there was still a ways to go. The pain in her shoulder had been her bumping into one of the moving staircases. She looked down and saw Sirius and Arlene running at top speed to catch up with her. She decided not to waste any time screaming and simply grabbed onto the first staircase that crossed her vertical path, hugging the stone railing with her arms, her legs in the air. She thanked the universe a second time that day for making her use shorts under her school skirt. But holding on turned out to be more of a challenge than she expected it to be. The more she held on, the stronger the gravitational force - or lack thereof - seemed to get. She gritted her teeth and winced in pain. And just when she thought her arms were going to pop out of their sockets,

"Got you!" She felt a male figure grab her by her by her floating waist. She let go of the railing, thinking it was safe. But she underestimated the strength of the lift, and her captor lost grip of her waist as she went up. In a flash though, he caught at her arms, and only then did she see that it was James Potter. His glasses were askew, but he managed a strained grin.

"If you fancied a flight, you could've just told me. You know I'm always up for broom rides and ladies!" He said with obvious difficulty, and still managed to sound amused.

"Your nonchalance is strangely refreshing," She chucked painfully. Suddenly she felt herself slowly float up again, dragging James with her, "Oh, no! Whoa!"

Just in the nick of time, Sirius jumped and brought them both down with a grunt, holding James by the waist.

"Simply spiffing for you to join us, Padfoot!" James groaned and laughed at the same time.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Prongsie," Sirius growled, holding them down with all his weight and might.

"Orwell, darling. You mind telling us what spell you used on dear Sammy here?" James asked between clenched teeth. Arlene had just caught up to them and was throwing every counter-spell she could think of.

"I-i-it was a wingardium leviosa," the little blonde stammered between muttering spells.

"This is in no way or form a wingardium leviosa," Sirius exclaimed.

"Gee, Padfoot, you figure?!" James laughed sarcastically.

"James, my wrist is going to break!" Samira yelled painfully, and the boy deftly switched to holding on to her robe sleeves.

"Orwell, stop! Nevermind finding a spell yourself! Go look for help!" Sirius barked at the desperate blonde, making her flinch. She flushed, but quickly gathered her bearings and wordlessly ran to get help.

"Whoa," Sirius felt himself being dragged up, so he let himself fall down altogether to put in some extra weight, and even so, his body didn't completely touch the floor.

Samira was wincing. It was no longer painful, but the tugging at her clothes was very uncomfortable. "James, just let go! I don't want to drag you two up! And I won't go further than the ceiling, anyway!"

"It's not the you floating up that worries me, it's more the you plummeting down to your death that has me a tad apprehensive. So if you don't mind, I'd rather keep you here close to me. Nothing romantic or anything, just out of brotherly concern, you know?"

"No flirting with my date, James," Sirius joked between clenched teeth.

"_Don't say things like that_!" Samira shrieked, all amusement gone. Both boys stared.

And just as Sirius was about to ask why, there was the loudest, most horrible ripping sound. Both boys fell to the floor on a heap, and James observed the sleeves he now held in his hands with horror. They then looked up, and Samira was once again floating up and away.

Samira, on the other hand, was not freaking out as badly as the boys. Sure, she was nervous, but she would eventually stop at the ceiling, and it was just a matter of time before a professor showed up and brought her safely down. Or at the very least prevent her from becoming Abdullah mush down below.

All of a sudden, she noticed that she was slowing down. Her heart now raced in earnest. Was she going to stop? Was she going to _fall_?!

As she slowly went up the last of the moving staircases, she gradually came face to face with Remus Lupin. He had half his body leaning outside the railing, and, she noticed, he was muttering something nonstop under his breath. His hazel eyes held her own onyx ones, unblinking, his face that of sheer concentration. She almost didn't notice that she had come to a complete stop right in front of him before he held his hand out, still muttering. She very gingerly took his hand, almost afraid that any sudden movements would break the moment. He then slowly pulled her in, very slowly, his eyes still on hers, like if they would fall out were he to look at anything else. It made her heart stutter. She had goosebumps by the time she was almost over the rail and into safety.

Gravity abruptly decided to work again right at that second. She only had time for a tiny gasp, and Remus noticed a second too late. Her sudden weight tipped him over the railing, and they both plummeted down at unforgiving speed. In a final effort, Remus pulled her in and shielded her with his body, then closed his eyes and waited for the impact.

It never came, though. Once they noticed this, they spared a peek, and saw that they now fell with the speed of a feather straight towards a staircase. Once close enough, Remus lightly stepped on it, not releasing the girl from his tight embrace. Her feel dangled a foot from the floor in the boys hold, but she was still too scared to complain.

"Remus!"

"Mate, are you okay?"

Remus flinched, holding Samira tighter in paranoia as his friends crowded him with worry. It would take a minute for him to get over almost falling to their death.

"I thought we were gonna die," Remus whispered shakily, not looking at any of them.

"I trust you are both uninjured," an old, wizened voice said a little distance away. They all turned towards it, and when they saw it was none other than Albus Dumbledore, Samira and Remus jumped apart like an electric jolt had gone through them, standing a foot apart like soldiers.

"Oh my God, Samira! Thank God you're safe! I was so scared! I'm so sorry!" Arlene came from behind Dumbledore, racing down the stairs and tackling her friend in a flurry of cried apologies.

"I'm okay, Arlene. It's okay," she awkwardly hugged her friend as she observed Dumbledore calmly come down the stairs to them.

"Um, yes, Professor Dumbledore, we're fine," Remus was the first to react, "Thank you for saving us!"

"You must thank Miss Orwell as well, Had she not made haste and found me just in time, the results could've been catastrophic," Dumbledore smiled at Arlene, who what still wailing apologies to her friend. "But I must insist that you both go to the Hospital Wing, just to make sure you're truly unharmed."

"We'll take them, Professor! Don't worry!" James said, and he and Sirius each grabbed Remus' arms, as if he were going to escape otherwise. Remus rolled his eyes.

Dumbledore gave a nod of approval, and started making his way up the stairs. "Oh," he suddenly stopped and turned to them, "Before I forget: Ten points go Gryffindor for a splendid show of both companionship," he nodded at James and Sirius, "and chivalry," he winked at Remus. With that, he turned and continued his merry way.

The group of teenagers silently observed him until he was out of sight.

"What did he mean by 'chivalry'?" Samira was the first to break the silence.

James and Sirius literally facepalmed. The latter sighed, "Nothing _you'll_ ever be experiencing again," he pushed her forward lightly. "Now, come on! To our original destination."

Samira tried to protest, but they all made her walk. The journey was - thankfully for her already strained nerves - mostly silent. No dangerous topics were breached. So despite having pretty much her worst nightmare come true by having this lot all together, she trusted that it wouldn't blow up in her face.

Not yet anyway.

Finally at the Hospital Wing, the boys only lingered long enough for Madam Pomfrey to declare Remus unscathed. After that, it was just Arlene and Samira sitting on one of the beds, the latter drinking some nasty potion that Madam Pomfrey had given her. She winced as she downed the last gulp, then gasped for air.

"_Bleagh_! Pain prevention my arse! Hasn't she ever heard of ibuprofen?"

"I don't think she has!" Arlene laughed.

The redhead smacked her lips in disgust, then slowly sobered. "…Arlene," she said softly, "Do you think Remus is mad at me?"

Arlene put a confused expression, "That's an odd question. You usually don't care if people get mad at you."

Samira shrugged in response.

"Besides, why in the world would you think that he'd be mad at you?"

"I pulled him over, Arlene!" She whispered urgently, "I could've killed us both!"

Arlene surprised her by giving her a pitying smile, slowly shaking her head, "Samira, that's insane! Besides, Remus practically jumped after you! He shielded you with his body, Sam! He was ready to take that fall for you!"

Samira's cheeks slowly turned glowing red, and just as she was about to answer, Madam Pomfrey came in through the white curtains around the bed, "Darling, you done with that? Good. Now, what are you going to do about that hair?" She asked, picking up the vial that was previously filled with the horrid potion.

"What hair?" Samira asked blankly. She turned to Arlene, who smiled guiltily. Turning again to the healer, she had a mirror ready for her. What faced her was absolutely horrifying: What used to be a long fringe that went down to her chin was singed up to her eyebrows. She opened her mouth in horror, seeming to scream silently.

"I take it she hadn't noticed?" The healer asked amused.

"No," Arlene could barely hold in her laughter. Samira suddenly remembered Sirius snorting on the way here. Oh my God, he had seen her like this. And James! _Remus_! Her color now went up to make her whole face beet red.

"I'll go get the scissors," Madam Pomfrey escaped through the curtains. Samira meanwhile was having a miniature panic attack.

"I cannot deal with this right now," Samira said as her friend bent over laughing. It was a rare sight to see her truly flustered, "No, really. I can't. I-I-I can't have people risking their lives for me, I just can't. I can't handle it. I mean, what do I do now? How am I supposed to live up to that? How do I ever even repay him? Stupid Remus! What's the big idea?! Being a hero? He didn't seem like that type of guy to me! Why'd he have to do that?! I didn't need his help, dammit! Why would he- OW!" Samira yelped when Arlene flicked her - Samira's - forehead. She rubbed the little sore spot with a pout, "What was that for?"

"You're rambling," Arlene answered, "And you only do that when you're embarrassed. I understand you being self-conscious, maybe. _Maybe_. 'Cause that's not like you either. The question is why you chose to be embarrassed over something like this?!" Arlene asked half amused, half exasperated.

Samira went, if possible, brighter red. She grabbed the nearest pillow, smushed her face in it, and gave a long, muffled shriek. "I hate being the damsel in distress!" She yelled into it, and let herself flop onto the bed. Arlene threw her hands up and groaned theatrically. Madam Pomfrey appeared once more, and proceeded to fix her fringe.

During this whole conversation, Remus stood by the Hospital Wing entrance, leaning against the wall, listening in with his superior hearing. He'd come back to check on her, but had caught them discussing him, and he'd felt compelled to hide. He didn't know what to make of what he'd heard, but he definitely had to let her know that he didn't expect anything in return for saving her. Who in their right mind would think that, anyway? In what kind of planet did she live in that people saved other people from near death experiences for the sake of having them indebted to you? He shook his head and left. He'd done what he'd come for. He'd keep an eye on her, and not just for his honor's sake. There were bigger, darker forces at work around here. Third parties wanted to see her, and many others, hurt. Samira might've been oblivious to this, but Remus was not, which made him involved in a huge mess he'd never expect to find. Times were changing. Whispers of war were slowly growing louder. And he had a feeling that the first place to feel the war would be Hogwarts.


End file.
